Kenwood and Hampstead Heath

Kenwood and Hampstead Heath – London Guided Walk

Definitely one of the things to do in London if you want to visit untouristy places. The walk from Highgate to Hampstead is perfect for a pub walk or a leisurely stroll with beautiful views of St Pauls and the London skyline.

Kenwood House was owned by the Earl of Iveagh and the
Iveagh bequest act of 1929 preserved it as an example of a gentlemen’s home in the 18th century. Inside you can see Rembrandts, Vermeer and Gainsboroughs.
You might recognise the exterior which is where Julian Roberts and Hugh Grant filmed a scene from Notting Hill.
Nearby are sculptures by Barbara Hepworth and Henry Moore.

Further along is the old dairy where you can experience cheese being made the old fashioned way on open days.

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Then past Bishops Avenue, London’s millionaire’s row and on to The Spaniard Inn for a pint. Built in 1585 and on the Camden Boundary with Barnet, it was called The Spaniards after old owners Francesco and Juan Perrero. Juan died in a duel and still haunts the upstairs room. As does Dick Turpin the famous highway robber, whose dad owned the pub.
The toll house is a listed building and another ghost was that of a lady in white walking through the garden. She inspired Bram Stoker when writing Dracula.

“Lucy lies in the tomb of her kin, a lordly death house in a lonely churchyard, away from teeming London, where the air is fresh, and the sun rises over Hampstead Hill, and where wild flowers grow of their own accord”
Van Helsing and Seward also dine at Jack Straw’s Castle and take cab at Spaniards in the book.
Lucy is interred in family tombs near “Hampstead Hill” and one of Lucy’s victims is found wandering at the edge of the heath.

Moving back onto Hampstead Heath from Spaniards Road you can see one of the the shooting locations for Scenes of a Sexual Nature starring Ewan McGregor.

Past the mixed bathing ponds and on to Southend Green where John Keats used to live in Keats Grove.

Then finish your walk at the Magldala Tavern, where Ruth Ellis shot her boyfriend and became the last woman to be hanged in Britain.